Civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu hints at bringing down airfares

Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu, who assumed office as Union Civil Aviation minister on Thursday, hinted at reducing airfares, which he said pose a challenge for the common man.

He said that the government's goal is to make air travel accessible to everyone, and this can only be achieved if it becomes more affordable.

“Since the time I have been announced as Civil Aviation Minister. Wherever I go, people have been mentioning that the prices have somehow increased over the last few years, especially after Covid. I need a thorough understanding of the issue, so, I am going to sit with the stakeholders,” Ram Mohan Naidu told PTI.

“I am going to hold review meetings. Definitely, my intention would be to bring down the (ticket) prices because that is a challenge for the common man. Our intention is to take air travel to the common man, unless you make it affordable, it is not going to happen,” he added.

Read: Airfares are rising, but don’t blame it on Vistara

Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu on Sunday took oath as a Cabinet minister in the Narendra Modi 3.0 government at the Centre. The 36-year-old leader secured a third-time victory from Srikakula in north Andhra Pradesh in the recently concluded Lok Sabha election. He defeated Tilak Perada of YSRCP by a margin of 3.2 lakh votes.

Airfares on major domestic routes like Kolkata-Bagdogra, Delhi-Bengaluru, and Delhi-Mumbai have seen a year-on-year increase of up to 12.7% in May this year, according to data from Thomas Cook (India) and SOTC Travel.

Aviation industry experts have attributed the recent hike in airfares to increased aviation turbine fuel prices, rupee depreciation, reduced flights by key players, and grounded planes due to engine supply issues.

Civil aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), approved domestic weekly departures for the summer schedule in March, which was nearly 6% higher than the same period last year, reported Hindustan Times.

Looking at the demand in the summer peak travel, it approved 24,275 weekly domestic departures across 14 domestic airlines. It also approved 1,922 weekly international departures, marking a 5.1% year-on-year growth.